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waves
| Term | Definition |
|---|---|
| absorption | the transfer of energy from a wave to a medium |
| amplitude | the distance between the highest crest and the resting position |
| barrier | something that blocks the way of an obstacle |
| bend | to turn or force from straight or even to curved or angular |
| brightness | the lightness or darkness of reflected light |
| color | what you see when light shines off an object |
| color filter | a transparent material that absorbs some colors and allows others to pass |
| echo | a repeated sound that is caused by the reflection of a sound wave from a surface |
| electromagnetic wave | a form of energy that can travel through empty space |
| frequency | the number of times a wave repeats in a given amount of time |
| lens | a curved peice of glass or plastic desiged to refract light in a specific way |
| light wave | waves that come from a light source |
| matter | anything that has mass and takes up space |
| mechanical wave | a wave requires a medium to travel through |
| medium/media | material through which a wave travels |
| mirror | a reflecting surface |
| path | also known as trajectory; is the path an object follows in space. |
| prism | a piece of glass or transparent material that bends light. |
| propagate | the way waves travel or move |
| proportion | something changes with regard to something else. |
| ray | the movement of light from its source to a surface or object. |
| ray diagram | shows how light travels, including what happens when it reaches a surface. |
| reflection | waves bouncing off a medium. |
| refraction/refracted | the bending of waves due to a change in speed. |
| sound wave | a vibration, or wave, that travels through matter (solid, liquid, or gas) and can be heard. |
| transmit | - to cause (light, heat, sound, etc.) to pass through a medium. |
| transparent | allows light to pass through. |
| visible light spectrum | the portion of the electromagnetic spectrum that the human eye can view. |
| wave | any disturbance that transfers energy from place to place. |
| wavelength | the distance the wave travels before it starts to repeat. |